Fishing with Toby
by blue-eyed-cow
Summary: Harvest Moon AP. One-shot. For the past five years, the highlight of Renee's week has been fishing with Toby. It's the same thing every time she has a day off. But today is different. Much different. Rated just to be safe.


**A/N: Welcome to 'Fishing with Toby!' This is a short One-Shot I came up with when I noticed in the game Renee is always at the Fishery on her days off. So I came up with a little TobyXRenee fic about it. I hope you all like it! Oh, and this is Renee's POV, by the way.**

** Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon: Animal Parade or any of it's characters.**

I practically skipped along the dirt trail going from Flue Fields, humming a gentle melody as I went. If there weren't so many things to crash into or trip on along the path, I would have just closed my eyes and let the true feeling of bliss wash over me. I smiled to myself as I continued humming and skipping, barely paying attention to where I was going. I didn't need to pay attention, though. I had walked along this path so many times, feeling just as happy every time.

As I strolled past Flute Field's beach, I let my mind wander, as it often does when I feel this happy. It wandered to the silver-haired boy who was waiting for me in Harmonica Town, as he was every Wednesday. It wandered to all the fun I had with him every time I had a day off. It wandered to all those other times I had spent time with him, each and every Wednesday for as the past five years. It wandered back to that time, the time five years ago, when my parents and his uncle introduced us. When he had taught me how to fish. When I had realized that he and I would always be friends, friends forever, no matter what.

My smile grew bigger as I continued to let my mind wander as much as it liked. I danced past Angela's ranch and down the dirt road to Harmonica Town. I twirled my short, brown hair in my fingers as I let out a sigh. Wednesdays were the best days of the week. They made me happy just thinking about them. The thought of an upcoming Wednesday was the thing that got me through work on Horn Ranch every week.

Because every Wednesday, Toby and I would meet on the Harmonica Docks and fish, and fish, and fish until the sun went down.

It was the highlight of my week. It was the thing that kept me going. It was the reason to stay happy; to put up with whatever life threw at me. It was- it was…

It was Toby.

My mind had been so busy wandering I hadn't even noticed I entered Harmonica Town. My soft shoes stepped onto the stone bridge leading over the canal. A soft breeze gently ruffled my hair and my yellow dress. I smiled. Today was going to be a good day. Every Wednesday was a good day.

I turned left at the Mayor's house, passed the tailor's and the bar. I waved to Kathy as I went, and she waved back. Soon enough I was at the Fishery, where Toby and I always met. I pushed the doors open confidently and strolled into the building. The smell of freshly caught fish caught my nose, and I breathed in the aroma deeply. I loved the smell of the fishery. It smelled like the ocean.

Ozzie was behind the counter as he always was, doing what looked like paperwork. I approached the counter, and Ozzie only noticed me when I rang the small bell that sat on the counter. He jumped, startled, and I giggled. Then he saw me, and his face twisted up into its usual smile. "Ah, hey Renee!" he said in his accent. Of course, he knew why I was here. I was here every Wednesday.

"Hi Ozzie!" I replied back, happily. Then I looked around, and realized something was missing. "Um, where's Toby?"

Toby's uncle looked thoughtful, adjusting his fisherman's hat slightly. "Hmm… I think he's out by the docks already."

"Oh…" I said. That was strange. Normally we walked over there together. I shrugged it off, said thank you to Ozzie, and grabbed my fishing pole, which was leaning against the wall in the corner. I used to carry it here every Wednesday, but eventually Toby told me I could just keep it at his house. That made life a lot easier. Then I made my way out the door and turned right to go down to the docks.

Soon I saw him: but he wasn't fishing. I fact, if I wasn't mistaken, he didn't even have his fishing pole. He was sitting close to Pascal's boat at the end of the docks, legs dangling off the edge. I couldn't see his face yet, but his head was hung, and he was sitting very still. Confused, I approached him slowly. Toby was always a very calm, relaxed guy. He was never angry, never sad. He always was smiling. I wondered what was wrong…

I finally got to him. I stood next to him, waiting for him to say something. But he just continued to sit on the edge, looking out into the ocean. Well, it was hard to tell where he was looking, with those squinted green eyes, but his head was tilted in that general direction, so that's just what I assumed. Besides, I liked his eyes. They were cute.

I finally decided to take a seat next to him, putting my fishing pole down and dangling my legs over the edge of the wooden dock. "Hey."

The fifteen-year-old didn't look at me. He didn't even move. "Hey."

Awkward silence, much? "So… do you want to start fishing now? I know I'm a little late, so we better start soon before all the salmon start sleeping. Those are your favorite, right? So, we should start now; let's go get your pole and we can start. I bet all those fish are getting hungry."

No answer.

I tried harder. "Why don't you want to fish? You always want to fish. C'mon, whatever it is I'm sure you'll feel better once you start!" I tried my best not to sound forceful, so I put some extra perk into my voice.

Toby still didn't say anything. I saw his fists curl up into fists at his side, and his face scrunched up ever so slightly.

I gave him a strange look. "Tob-"

Suddenly he stood up so fast I almost fell off the dock. "Renee, I don't _want_ to fish with you today! Why don't you get that?" He yelled. He yelled at me. At _me_. My eyes grew wide. Toby never yelled at me. Never. Toby was never mad at me. He continued. "Seriously, sometimes you bug the living crap out of me! Do you even know _how_ to leave someone alone? It's like you're a three-year-old or something! Do you really need me every three seconds? Just-" He brought his hand up to his forehead and grabbed a fistful of silver hair angrily. "Just go away and leave me alone; for once in you're life!"

For a second I didn't move. I just stared at him with wide, brown eyes. Toby was towering above me, face screwed up in pain. He was panting slightly. I was still sitting there, my fishing pole lying down next to me. Everything was silent. Then…

I got up slowly, feeling like I was in a dream. I glided over to him slowly, face blank. Then I brought my hand up slowly…

…and slapped him right across the face.

Tears rolled down my cheeks. "Jerk." I managed to choke out before my voice cracked. Then, leaving my fishing pole behind, I turned on my heels and ran.

My feet carried me away from our place at the dock. Once I looked behind me, and I saw Toby still standing there, hair hanging stiffly over his face. One of his cheeks were red. He hadn't moved from that spot.

I hit him… I _hit _him.

Thoughts swirled through my head as I ran blindly away from the docks. What the hell was that all about? Why did he yell at me? Did he really mean what he said? How could he? I was just trying to be nice! Was it ok that I slapped him? Of course it was; he deserved it! But he seemed so sad… but I don't care. He's a jerk. A jerk.

More tears found their way down my face as I began to slow my pace down, lungs burning and legs aching. I slowly looked around, observing my new environment. I was on Harmonica Beach, next to the lighthouse. Still panting slightly, I sunk down onto the sand and brought my knees in tight to my chest, hugging them close. I angrily whipped away my tears and held my breath. That always helped me to calm down. Taking deep breaths never worked.

Toby… Toby… what happened? Why did you yell? I felt anger weld up inside of me, and I didn't try to stop it. I had every right to be angry. He said horrible things. Things I didn't even know could come out of Toby's mouth. But they did. And now I was mad.

I sat on the beach for about ten minutes, fuming away quietly, listening to the sound of the surf rushing the sand. Even the waves sounded angry, brutally beating against the soft sand. I bet the sand didn't do anything wrong. I bet the sand was just trying to be friendly with the waves. So why did the waves have to lash out so?

I let out a long sigh.

Toby…

Gosh, I felt like screaming.

So why shouldn't I?

Struck by sudden inspiration, I stood up, hands curled into fists, a determined look plastered on my face. I was never a loud girl, so this would be completely against me. But I didn't care. I didn't care if everyone on the whole island heard me. In fact, I _wanted_ them to hear me.

I took in a huge breath of air, then, at the top of my lungs, I screamed, "TOBY, YOU JERK!" I held out the last word slightly. The loud yell echoed for a second, and all of Harmonica Town seemed to grow silent.

I felt good. I felt _really_ good. Man, it felt so good to just let go like that! I hope Toby heard. I hope he knew what I thought. I wanted him to.

Still angry, I sat back down in the sand, returning to my position of hugging my knees.

A few more minutes went by. I was still staring angrily out into the rough ocean with narrowed eyes when I suddenly heard footsteps behind me. My first thought was Toby. But, no, those footsteps were too light to be Toby's. Besides, I still didn't want to see him. I was still mad.

Finally, I turned around to see Paolo approaching me with his usual small smile on his face. The small boy had his hat turned backwards, like always, and his squinted eyes scrunched up into a smile. I knew Paolo well, since he was Toby's cousin, and he often fished with us.

For once, I didn't return his smile.

"Hey, Renee." He said in a young voice, bounding up to me and taking no time to take a seat next to me.

I was quiet for a second. Then I sighed. "Hey, Paolo."

We were quiet for a few second, then Paolo said, "So, why are you mad at my cousin?"

Startled, I turned to look into the kid's squinted brown eyes. Then I realized he had probably heard me yell. My face returned to it's grimace. "Well, Toby was just being a jerk. I politely asked him if he wanted to fish with me, and he started yelling at me." I puffed angrily and turned my head away like a stubborn horse. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"Oh…" Paolo looked slightly out-of-it, his voice far away.

There was a pause. Then…

"Well, today is _that day…" _he mused silently, almost to himself.

I cocked my head, confused. "What do you mean?"

Now it was Paolo's turn to sigh. "Well, I wasn't supposed to tell anyone," he squirmed, "but… I guess you deserve to know, right?"

I always knew Paolo was smarter than the average six-year-old. "Right."

"Well..." he started, and for once, a frown had replaced his adorable smile. "You see… on this day five years ago, something… _happened._" He seemed to be looking for the right way to say it. I waited patiently. "Well, five years ago… my aunt and uncle, Toby's parents, got into a- a boating accident…" Paolo's face suddenly screwed up with pain, and I couldn't stop myself from gasping. I somehow knew where this was going. "And they, uh, died." He finished bluntly, playing with his shirt. "So… Toby always gets kind of… _moody_ on this day. I guess you wouldn't know, since his is the first year it falls on a Wednesday, huh?"

A Wednesday…

Oh, my god.

My stupid mistake I had made suddenly came rushing back to me, and gave me a good punch in the gut. It felt like that, anyways. I couldn't breath, and felt like all the wind had been knocked out of me. Oh no, oh no, oh no…

"Renee?"

I squeezed my eyes shut. "Paolo… when he yelled at me, I- I called him a jerk! And I… I… I slapped him, Paolo!" It was so hard to hold back tears, now. "I was so mean to him! And then I was so mad! I had no idea that's why he was sad! I'm so stupid, Paolo! So stupid! I shouldn't have slapped him! I- I didn't know! I-"

A small hand was cupped over my mouth. Paolo was smiling when he brought his hand away from it. "It's ok, Renee. I think you should just apologize, then everything will be better!"

I stared at him for a second. Then, flipping back into reality, I stood up, sending sand everywhere. "Yeah… yeah I need to go apologize! Right now!" I instantly stared running to the Fishery. Before I left the beach I turned my head around and yelled, "Thanks, Paolo!"

The little boy waved from the shoreline. "Don't mention it!"

I ran up the ledge, and was about to turn the corner to the Fishery when…

BAM!

I crashed right into someone. I was sent flying onto the dock, landing with a soft "Umph!" Rubbing my head slightly, I opened my eyes to see Toby himself, standing above me, looking concerned. He held out a hand. "Sorry for knocking you over. I didn't see you coming."

Not meeting his eyes, I took his hand and he helped me up.

Then I gathered my bravery and said to him, "Toby, I need to talk to you." But I said it at the exact same time he said, "Renee, I have something to say."

There was an awkward silence, so I tried again. "I just…" But, once again, Toby said something at the same time: "I think…"

Another awkward pause.

"Um… you first." Toby said, blushing slightly and looking away.

"Uh, no, go ahead."

"No, what you have to say is probably more important."

"I doubt that."

"I owe you one from knocking you over."

"I owe you a lot of things."

He paused, probably trying to think of a good retort. Finally, he sighed in defeat. "Ok… well… for starters, here's your fishing pole." He held out the metal pole I hadn't even noticed he had been holding.

I took it with a shaking hand. "Thanks."

"Yeah, no problem." He tried to smile, but I guess he was nervous, too. "So, um, about earlier… I'm really sorry. I didn't mean any of that. I was just a little… sad, so I took it out on you. I had no right, and I'm very sorry." He nodded when he said this, as if to confirm his apology.

I stared at him. "_You're_ sorry?" I asked in disbelief. "I'm the one who hit you! I'm sorry, too, Toby. Paolo… Paolo told me what today was." I dropped my voice slightly. Toby cringed, but then relaxed again. I continued. "I am so, so sorry. I didn't know. I shouldn't have bothered you." My voice jumped about three octaves. "Forgive me?"

This time, he showed me a real smile; the smile that I've grown to love over these five years. "How can I _not_ forgive you? It's ok, you didn't know! And you weren't bothering me. I just snapped, is all. In fact," a small blush crept over his face. "I- I really love fishing with you, Renee." My heart skipped a beat. "It's the highlight of my week. Paolo and my uncle are fun to fish with, too, but that's nothing compared to fishing with you." The fisherman gave me a small smile, rubbing the back of his head shyly.

I smiled, too, chocolate-brown eyes lighting up. "Me too! I love fishing with you, Toby!"

We both stood there for a few seconds, beaming at each other, until Toby said, "What do you say we fish a little right now? Then we can go inside and grab some lunch."

Gathering up my bravery, I reached out my free hand and took his hand in mine. We both blushed, but continued to smile. "I say that sounds like a great plan."

So, hand in hand, we walked down the dock to our favorite fishing spot. I didn't see Paolo smiling in the background, or the rough waves beating against the dock's legs, or even the sun shining down so hard on Casanet Island. I only saw Toby and I, fishing together happily, as we did every Wednesday.

And Wednesday's were still my favorite days, no matter what life threw at me. As long as I had the fisherman's nephew by my side.

**A/N:** **The End! Did you like it? Or did you absolutely hate it? Please review and tell me what you think! Reviews make my day =)**

** Thanks so much for reading!**

** ~blue-eyed-cow**


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